Although there have been relatively few unaccompanied saxophone quartets in jazz (the best known are the World Saxophone Quartet and the now-disbanded 29th Street Saxophone Quartet), this group was founded in 1959 and though it has recorded infrequently, it is one of the best around. With Dennis Anderson on soprano, Ken Hitchcock on tenor, Ralph Olsen on alto, and Al Hunt on baritone, the group devotes the entire release to the music of contemporary New York composers and arrangers. All four musicians are superb talents deserving of wider recognition. The material throughout the CD is first-rate as well. Dan Block's suite of three works by Thelonious Monk is very creative, especially Bye-ya. Billy Kerr's haunting introduction to Billy Strayhorn's Lush Life adds an entire new dimension to this bittersweet ballad. Bob Mintzer, known as a big-band leader and for his work with the smooth jazz group the Yellowjackets, contributed the intriguing Quartet #1 in Three Movements. Following a bouncing merry-go-round introduction, the middle section is almost dirge-like. The finale is a tantalizing jig. Paquito D'Rivera contributed the tasty miniature Wapango, a playful work; he also wrote the dreamy Elegy to Eric Dolphy, a feature for Olsen that captures the spirit of the late multi-instrumentalist, who died at the age of just 36. Liner note writer Phil Woods, who previously wrote for the NYSQ, penned the three-part Deer Head Sketches. The Bandstand incorporates a number of familiar bop themes, while The Front Porch is a beautiful reflective ballad. The Kitchen is aptly named, for if a jazz musician can't handle this the heat from this tricky chart, he should find another line of work. This first-rate release will please fans of saxophone quartets especially; but all jazz fans need to give it a listen. Highly recommended. ~ Ken Dryden, Rovi

1		Epistrophy
2		Monk's Mood
3		Bye-Ya
4		Lush Life
5		Movement I
6		Movement II
7		Movement III
8		Wapango
9		Going to London
10		Count Off
11		Ira's Tune
12		Honk!
13		Victor Young Medley
14		Elegy to Eric Dolphy
15		The Bandstand
16		The Front Porch
17		The Kitchen